Relay device with adjustment means



Sept. 17, 1968 BEAU-1 ET AL 3,401,573

RELAY DEVICE WITH ADJUSTMENT MEANS Filed July 13, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 9

Sept. 17, 1968 R. 5. BEACH ET AL I 3,401,573

RELAY DEVICE WITH ADJUSTMENT MEANS Filed July 18, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 6

INVENTORS ,a M

United States Patent 3,401,573 RELAY DEVICE WITH ADJUSTMENT MEANS Richard G. Beach, Greece, and Howard R. Jaquith, Rochester, N.Y., assignors to Taylor Instrument Companies, a corporation of New York Filed July 18, 1966, Ser. No. 565,927 Claims. (Cl. 74-469) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A four-bellows pneumatic controller where the bellows act in parallel on one side of a plate. Plate position is detected by a bafile and nozzle mechanism. The mechanism is mounted on a first lever which is pivotally mounted on a second lever pivotally mounted independently of the plate. The pivot axes of the levers are parallel to the line of action of the bellows. The positions of the levers are individually adjustable on their pivot axes, and the geometry is such that such adjustments move the baffle and nozzle mechanism in directions substantially at right angles to each other and to the rod on the plate contacting the bafiie, in effect. The baffle and nozzle mechanism can be angularly adjusted bodily about the rod.

The present invention relates to relays of the sorts disclosed and/or claimed in US. Letters Patent No. 3,047,002 to H. R. Jaq-uith, granted July 31, 1962, entitled, Controller, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention.

The general object of the present invention is to provide novel improvements in such relays.

The drawing, detailed description and claims, infra, will elucidate various specific objects of the invention, such as providing new and improved adjusting means for the aforesaid relays.

Briefly, a relay of the present invention, as in the Iaquith patent, has a motion detector which is rotated about a given axis along a path about a part moved by means such as bellows or the like. The motion detector is sensitive to motion of said part in a degree corresponding to the position of said detector on said path. As in the Jaquith patent, it is desired to initially position the given axis in a certain relation to said part. According to the present invention, such relation is established by moving the detectors axis parallel to itself and in two different directions, each being toward and away from said part.

In a preferred embodiment, the motion detector is rotatably supported on a lever, said lever being deflectible toward and away from said part, and said lever is supported on a second lever, said second lever being deflecti-ble toward and away from siad part. The second lever is pivoted at one end to fixed structure, and the first lever is pivoted at one end to the other end of said second lever, and the whole is mounted with the levers lying along each other and to one side of said part, with a portion of the said first said lever extending over said part with the axis of rotation of said detector in about the right position. Such arrangement enables deflection of the levers to shift the said axis of rotation in two arcs intersecting each other at a substantial angle, say 90.

The lever deflections in effect define a plane transverse to the axis of rotation of said detector and in a small region of this plane, said deflection can shift such intersection to any point thereof. Manufacturing tolerances are typically such that the relay device can be manufactured such that, prior to adjustment, the assembled device has the said axis of rotation in said region.

3,401,573 Patented Sept. 17, 1968 Hence, the said levers provide a means of taking the newly-assembled device and adjusting the last said axis substantially at the exact location desired.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective sketch of a relay device having lever structure in accordance with the invention; and

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of a pillar for supporting said lever structure;

FIGURES 3 and 4 are plan views of levers for said lever structure;

FIGURE 5 is a side elevation of said pillar and one of said levers assembled thereto;

FIGURE 6 is a section in the plane C-C of FIG- URES 2 to 5, inclusive, of the pillar and lever structure assembled together;

FIGURE 7 is a side elevation of said pillar at to the view of FIGURE 5; and

FIGURES 8 and 9 are, respectively, an elevation and a plan view of motion detector and other structure supported by the said lever structure, FIGURE 8 being partly in section.

The relay of FIGURE 1 is equivalent to the one shown in FIGURE 3 of the Jaquith patent and, in fact, for present purposes, it is in great part identical to its predecessor, as for example, in the case of bellows 20, 21, 22 and 23 mounted on base '26, motion plate 24 mounted on said bellows, rod 27 (the equivalent of ball 27 of the Jaquith patent) mounted on plate 24, baffle 32 operated by rod 27 to vary the escape of air from nozzle 28, and suitable pneumatic circuitry (not shown) interconnecting said bellows and said nozzle, such as that including booster relay R in patent FIGURE 3.

As in the patent, a stiff wire 25 provides a universal hinge for plate 24. However, in the present case, the wire 25 is much stiffer than in the relay of patent FIG- URE 3, stiff enough, in fact that it bears substantially the entire burden of controlling the motion of plate 24 in response to the forces due to pressure in the several bellows. The collective spring force of the bellows is small compared to that of the wire, and the springs 50 and 51 of patent FIGURE 3 have been eliminated.

In the relay of patent FIGURE 3, one function of springs 50 and 51 was to adjust the position of plate 24 with respect to the axis of rotation of baffie 32. Ideally, the wire 25 was a right cylinder of circular crosssection, and .both cylindrical axis of wire 25, and a di ameter of ball 27, coincided with the axis of rotation of baflie 32. In practice, however, it was necessary to adjust the force of springs 50 and 51 on plate 24 to bring the plate to a position where a diameter of ball 27 would lie on the axis of rotation of baffle 32.

In the present case, though the baflle operating mechanism and nozzle location are somewhat different, and rod 27 is a right cylinder, circular in cross-section, effectively the same adjustment must be made. According to the present invention, the adjustment is made by moving the axis of rotation of baffle 32, with respect to the cylindrical axis of wire 25. While such mode of adjustment is consequent to eliminating springs 50 and 51, it is a preferable form of adjustment because it has no affect manufactured so that the planes of base 26 and plate 24 are substantially parallel to each other, the cylindrical axes of wire 25 and rod 27 are coincident and substantially parallel at least to the axis of rotation of the baffle, and such that these relations will remain fixed for normal use. All that remains is to provide for making the last said axes coincide, and as a practical matter, this comes down to providing for moving the baffle rotation axis parallel to itself far enough and in a direction such as will make a given point on the rod axis coincide with a point on the baffle rotation axis. This given point is the center of the cross-section of rod 27 corresponding to the point on said cross-section at which the baflie mechanism contacts the rod. Actually, the rod 27 may be slightly tilted with respect to the baflle rotation axis so that the circle of contact shifts axially as the baffle mechanism is rotated on its axis, and contact is along an elliptical path as the baflle is rotated. This discrepancy, which is due to the tolerances involved making the subassembly consisting of base, bellows, Wire and rod, is negligible in practice with respect to its effect on the operation of the relay.

Looking at FIGURE 1 hereof, it will be seen that the baffle mechanism includes the plate motion detector 100 contacting rod 27, and being mounted by means of three spring strips 101 to a frame 102, in the usual crossed spring strip fulcrum fashion. Frame 102, in turn, is mounted on a nozzle block 103 from which nozzle 28 projects with its opening next the flat of baflle 32. Frame 102 is essentially a rigid strip connected at either end to ends of the outermost spring strips 101, said strip having an extension 102" fixed to block 103, and extension 102' bent toward and fixed to one end of the intermediate spring strip 101, which is at right angles to the other spring strips.

Baflle 32 and detector 100 define in eflect, a lever pivoted by strips 101 for deflection in a plane normal to the plane of rotation of the baflle mechanism as a whole, such lever having an extension 32' bent toward and fixed to the other end of said intermediate spring strip, and being connected to the other ends of said outermost spring strips 101 after the fashion of frame 102.

Frame 102 and a sector plate 104 to which block 103 is fixed are fixed to a shaft 105, and shaft 105' is rotatably supported by an arm 106 projecting from the intermediate portion of a lever 107. Lever 107, in turn is deflectibly mounted at one end on end of a lever 108. Lever 108 is deflectibly mounted at its other end on a pillar 109 (see FIGURES and 6 hereof), which is, in effect, an extension of base 26. The center of deflection for lever 107 is shown at A, and that for lever 108, at B, A being a fixed point of lever 107, and B being a fixed point of the stationary structure including base 26 and pillar 109.

Supporting levers 107 and 108 to be arranged so that their deflections are normal to the rotation axis of shaft 105, it is obvious that levers 107 and 108 can be located somewhere such that the rotation axis of shaft 105 will be as nearly coincident with said axis of rod 27 as is possible (neglecting a possible tilt of said rotation axis with respect to the axis of rod 27). Likewise, if levers 107 and 108 are so located, it is obvious that if lever 107 alone then is deflected, said rotation axis will move off said rod axis, or that if lever 108 is deflected with lever 107 moving bodily therewith, that said rotation axis will again shift, but at an angle to the path of its former movement.

As the described shifts will be in circular arcs cutting each other, it is therefore evident that it is possible to position said rotation axis anywhere in a region around and including the axis of rod 27, within limits defined by the range of lever deflections and the radii of such deflections.

Conversely, it is obvious that the above works in reverse, namely, some suitable combination of lever deflections will serve to shift the said rotation axis onto the axis of rod 27 from a position offset therefrom, thereby providing the desired adjustment for the baffle mechanism. That is, the relay is manufactured so that pillar 109 and levers 107 and 108, in some position orient the baflle mechanism approximately correctly, and have such proportions and orientation that any expectable deviation of rotation axis from rod axis can be corrected by adjusting the positions of said levers.

FIGURE 1 is for the most part greatly exaggerated in the dimension corresponding to the axis of rod 27 but is otherwise of about representative proportions. In FIG- URE 2 et al., the exaggeration is dispensed with in favor of a rendering of the motion detecting mechanism and its 4 supporting and adjustment structure substantially in accordance with the form and dimension in which they are actually manufactured.

Thus, FIGURE 3 depicts lever 108 in plan, and FIG- URES 5 and 6 show it in position on pillar 109, which provides, as a portion thereof, a sort of post 114 having a flat spring 115 carrying a pivot point 116 at its one end, and being fixed at its other end to post 114, as by a pair of screws 117 tapped into post 114. Spring 115 urges point 116 into a hole 118 of lever 108, thereby defining center of deflection B (FIGURE 1) of lever 108.

Lever 108 rests more or less flat on top of pillar 109 with its slot 111 overlying a hole 119 tapped into the top of pillar 109 for receiving screw 110. Slot 111 extends along the arc of deflection of lever 108 and defines the range of such deflection, screw 110 providing for clamping the lever 108 into adjusted position.

As is evident from FIGURE 6, lever 107 is mounted more or less flat on top of lever 108. A spring 120, like spring 115, and having a pivot point 121, received in a hole 122 of lever 107, is supported by a post 123. Post 123 is like post 114, but is an upwardly extending portion of lever 108 (see FIGURE 3) thereby defining the center of deflection A (FIGURE 1) as a fixed point of lever 108. As this mounting arrangement of lever 107 on lever 108 is structurally the same as that of lever 107 on pillar 109, its elements have not been separately illustrated to any further extent than the plan views of FIGURES 3 and 4, and the section view of FIGURE 6, inherently provided.

The slot 112 overlies a hole 124 tapped into the tapered end of lever 108, which hole receives the screw 113. Slot 112 extends along the arc of deflection of lever 107, and defines the range of such deflection, screw 113 providing for clamping the lever 107 into adjusted position.

While the mounting arrangement of levers 107 and 108, as thus far described suffice for the adjustments described in FIGURE 1, it is preferable to provide certain refinements to facilitate making the adjustments.

Thus, an eccentric adjuster Z comprising a cylinder 125, having a pin 126 extending therefrom near the periphery of the circular aspect of the cylinder 125, is mounted for rotation on its cylindrical axis in lever 107. Lever 107 lips at 127 over about half the periphery of the upper end of cylinder and a pin 128, projecting radially from a slotted stub 129 extending from the upper end of the cylinder 125, extends over the peripheral portion of the lever around the other half of the said periphery, thereby retaining the cylinder 125 in place. The lipped portion 127 of lever 107, of course, preferably should not extend so far as to allow less than 180 rotation of cylinder 125.

Pin 126 extends into a slot 130 extending radially of lever 108 with respect to depression 118, and being of the width of pin 126, which is preferably circular in cross section.

By means of a screw driver applied to the slot in stub 129, the cylinder 125 can be turned, thus moving the pin 126 in a circular arc transverse to the length of slot 130, thereby causing the lever 107 to pivot on the center A of its arc of deflection. At the desired deflection, screw 110 is screwed down to clamp the lever 107 at the desired deflection.

Preferably, some resistance to deflection should be provided for lever 107, independent of screw 112, so that lever 107 resists deflection enough that it holds itself in adjusted position till clamped by screw 110. While this could be done by making the fit of cylinder 125 in lever 107, or of pin 126 in slot 130, a tight one, in this case a slot 131 is provided in lever 107, extending, along the arc of deflection of lever 107, for reception of a screw (not shown) in a hole 132, tapped into lever 108, said screw having a spring washer that will frictionally hold the lever 107 in position but allow cylinder 125 to deflect the lever when a moderate amount of torque is applied to the cylinder. A counter sink 133 is shown provided around slot 131 to receive the aforesaid screw and washer. Slot 131 will be sufiiciently long to allow the deflection of lever 107 in the range defined by slot 112.

Lever 108, likewise, is provided with an eccentric adjuster S, which, as it is identical to adjuster Z in structure and arrangement, need not be described, except to note in this case its pin 126 is received in a slot 134 in the top of pillar 109, and the adjuster S is in the end of lever 108 opposite the end of lever 107 in which adjuster Z is mounted, adjuster S exposed to access through lever 107 via a hole 135 through lever 107.

Reference numerals 136, 137, and 138 identify a slot in lever 108, a tapped hole in pillar 109, and a counter sink corresponding, respectively, to slot 131 of lever 107, tapped hole 132 of lever 108, and counter sink 133 of lever 107 the former said slot, tapped hole and counter sink providing for receiving a screw and spring washer (neither shown) frictionally holding lever 108 in adjusted position, but clearing the adjacent surface of lever 107.

The sector 104 has a circularly-arcuate row of teeth 139, and a gear 140, meshing with said teeth, is journaled to lever 107, by a slotted stub shaft 141. As the stub shaft projects through the lever 108 and a slight distance beyond at its lower end, a counter sink 142 in lever 108 is provided to allow the said lower end to move freely as lever 107 is deflected with respect to lever 108.

Turning to FIGURES 8 and 9, it will be seen that sector 104 has a spherical protrusion 143 from the lower end of a hub 144, which presents the center of the protrusion at the center of curvature of the row of teeth 139. Arm 106 has a conical depression 145 therein mating with protrusion 143, and at the lower side of arm 106 (see sectional showing thereof in FIGURE 8) has a pivot point 146 through the frame member 102 of the motion detector. This pivot point 146 and protrusion 143 together correspond to the shaft 105 of FIGURE 1: supporting sector 104 on the arm 106 and fixing the axis of rotation of sector 104.

Pillar 103 is tapped for a pair of screws fixing a portion of frame 102 to the lower end of the pillar. Pillar 103 in FIGURE 8 is, of course, the pillar of FIGURE 1, but shown in its more usual proportions.

Nozzle 28 is supported on an ofiset portion 148 of pillar 103, communicating with an angled bore 149 in portion 148 which terminates in a nipple 150, to which connection is made with a flexible air hose (not shown) for conducting air under pressure to the nozzle 28. The hose would normally have a certain amount of slack therein permitting the sector to rotate with no interference from the hose, which of course, terminates at some fixed structure forming part of the controller or other pneumatic circuitry (not shown) of the relay.

As will be seen from FIGURE 8, rod 27 is, in normal proportions, rather shorter in length and larger in diameter than shown in FIGURE 1.

As the sector 104 would have a scale thereon (not shown), a pointer on arm 107 would provide indication of the angular position of the sector.

The operation of a relay according to the invention is as explained in the Jaquith application. Thus, the relation between changes in input and output pressures is a function of the angular position of sector 104. In the present instance, the structure shown contemplates about 90 of useful angular adjustment of sector 104. If the bellows 21 and 23 are taken as the input bellows, then a change in pressure in one of them evokes an eventual change in pressure in bellows and 22 of from substantially zero to maximum, depending on the angular position of the sector 104.

The output pressure of the pneumatic controller embodiment of the invention fluctuates about a given value intermediate the ends of the output pressure range of the instrument, this given value obtaining when the rod axis and the sector rotation axis are substantially coincident.

Accordingly, the nozzle 28 is so located that the spacing between baflle and nozzle is such that said given pressure obtains in each of bellows 20 and 22, when the pressure in bellows 21 is equal to the pressure in bellows 23. Typically, the dimensions of the lever comprising baflle 32 and detector are given and the spring strips 101 bias the edge of detector 100 lightly into engagement with rod 27. Hence, the nozzle 28 is adjusted toward or away from bafile 32 in order to establish this condition. It is to be remarked that in this example, detector 100 is a position detector, since the output of the controller reflects the position of rod 27, not just motion thereof.

Levers 107 and 108 require only a few degrees of adjustment range to properly zero and synchronize the relay, the zero adjustment being deflection of lever 107 and the synchronization adjustment being deflection of lever 108. The proper zero and synchronization exists when, for equal pressure in all bellows (which are positioned to exert equal moments on plate 24, then), the sector may be angularly adjusted through its entire range without a substantial change in output occurring. Ideally, this condition obtains when the axis of rod 27, which is a right cylinder, coincides with the axis of rotation of sector 104. Actually, the rod 27 may be slightly tilted, because, as long as some point on its axis is a radius of the path of contact of detector on the periphery of rod 27 and also a point on the axis of rotation of sector 104, the eccentricity of said path is not sufficient to create a significant change in output for a relay device manufactured with the tolerances usual for apparatus of this sort.

The foregoing is a detailed description, in accordance with the statutes, of the best form of our invention known to us this far. Those skilled in the art, however, will be aware of various changes in and applications of the means and principles disclosed that may be made without departing from the invention as claimed hereinbelow. For instance, the rod 27 is exemplified as an integral part of plate 24 and as tilting, but clearly the rod could be moved in any path having a component normal to the axis of rotation of sector 104, and/or moved by means other than the bellows and plate arrangement shown, and/or less proximately located to plate 24. Again, rod motion or position change could be detected by means other than the baffle/nozzle arrangement shown. Finally, the inventions utility is not limited to the embodiment described, viz., a pneumatic controller capable of providing proportional plus reset plus rate control-action.

We claim:

1. A relay device comprising, a plate, a support, hinge means, a motion detector, mounting means for said motion detector, and motive means;

said plate being mounted on said support by said hinge means to provide for tilting said plate with respect to said support, said motive means being constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a first axis, said first axis being defined by said hinge means, and said plate having a part tilting therewith;

said motion detector being mounted by said mounting means on said support for rotation about a second axis defined by said mounting means and lying transverse to said first axis, said motion detector and said mounting means being so constructed and arranged that said rotation moves said motion detector along a path about said part, said motion detector being sensitive to tilt of said part in a degree corresponding to the position of said motion detector on said path;

said mounting means including a member and means constructed and arranged for adjustment of said member along each of two paths, each of which is transverse of the other, said two paths each being toward and away from said part; and said member mounting said motion detector for the said rotation thereof.

2. The relay device of claim 1, wherein said motive means is also constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a third axis, said third axis being transverse to said first axis and to said second axis, said third axis being defined by said hinge means.

' 3. The relay device of claim 1, wherein said adjustment means includes a further member, the first said member being movably mounted on said further member for movement of said first said member along one of said two paths, said further member being movably mounted on said support for movement of said further member along the other of said two paths.

4. The relay device of claim 3, wherein said motive means is also constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a third axis, said third axis being transverse to said first axis and to second axis, said third axis being defined by said hinge means.

5. The relay device of claim 3, said further member being a first lever mounted at one end on said support for deflection of its other end toward and away from said part, and said first said member being a second lever mounted at one end to said other end of said first lever for deflection of said second lever toward and away from said part; said motion detector being supported solely by said second lever, said levers having means whereby said first levers deflected position is fixable with respect to said support and that said second levers deflected position is fixable with respect to said first lever.

6. The relay device of claim 5, wherein said motive means is also constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a third axis, said third axis being transverse to said first axis and to said second axis, said third axis being defined by said hinge means.

7. The relay device of claim 5, wherein said motion detector has an element effectively in contact with said part, said element being deflectible in response to tilting of said part, said part being located in the vicinity of said second axis; said levers being so proportioned and their deflection axes being so located that there is a set of deflected positions thereof in which a given point on said part falls on said second axis.

8. The relay device of claim 7, wherein said motive means is also constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a third axis, said third axis being transverse to said first axis and to said second axis, said third axis being defined by said hinge means.

9. The relay device of claim 5, wherein said part has a circular contour, and said motion detector has an element effectively in contact with said contour, said element being deflectible away from said second axis in response to tilting of said part toward said element, said part being located so that the center of said contour is normally at least approximately on said second axis; said levers being so proportioned and their deflection axes being so located that there is a set of deflected positions of said levers in which said center falls on said second axis.

10. The relay device of claim 9, wherein said motive means is also constructed and arranged to tilt said plate about a third axis, said third axis being tranverse to said first axis and to said second axis, said third axis being defined by said hinge means.

11. A relay device comprising, a support, a motion detector, mounting means for said motion detector, motive means on said support and a part moved along a given direction by said motive means;

said motion detector being mounted by said mounting means on said support for rotation about an axis defined by said mounting means and lying transverse to said given direction, said motion detector and said mounting means having means whereby said rotation moves said motion detector along a path about said part, said motion detector being sensitive to movement of said part in a degree corresponding to the position of said motion detector on said path; said mounting means including a member and means constructed and arranged for adjustment of said member along each of two paths, each of which is trans verse of the other, said two paths each being toward and away from said part; and said member mounting said motion detector for the said rotation thereof.

12. The relay device of claim 11, wherein said adjustment means includes a further member, the first said member being movably mounted on said further member for movement of said first said member along one of said two paths, said further member being movably mounted on said support for movement of said further member along the other of said two paths.

13. The relay device of claim 12, wherein said motion detector has an element effectively in contact with said part, said element being deflectible in response to movement of said part, said part being located in the vicinity of said axis; said members being so proportioned and their paths of movement being so located that there is a set of deflected positions thereof in which a given point on said part falls on said axis.

14. The relay device of claim 12, said further member being a first lever mounted at one end on said support for deflection of its other end toward and away from said part, and said first said member, a second lever mounted at one end to said other end of said first lever for deflection of said second lever toward and away from said part; said motion detector being supported solely by said second lever, said levers having means whereby said first levers deflected position is fixable with respect to said second lever.

15. The relay device of claim 12, wherein said part has a circular contour, and said motion detector has an element effectively in contact with said contour, said element being movable in response to movement of said part toward and away from said element, said part being located so that the center of said contour is normally at least approximately on said axis; said members being so proportioned and their paths of movement being so located that there is a set of positions of said members in which said center falls on said axis.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,047,002 7/1962 Jaquith l3785 MILTON KAUFMAN, Primary Examiner. 

